Dr Sasha Kosanic
School of Biological and Environmental Sciences
Faculty of Science
Email: A.Kosanic@ljmu.ac.uk
Telephone: 0151 231 2770
Dr Sasha Kosanic is a physical geographer who uses an interdisciplinary approach (mixed method approaches) to answer complex questions on climate change impacts (local and regional scales) on nature and societies. She finished her PhD at the University of Exeter, where her research focused on investigating local climate change and its impacts on biodiversity in West Cornwall. She also used biodiversity historical records (i.e. Herbarium data) to analyse changes in plant species distribution across West Cornwall and to provide answers on how we can use Ellenberg values to detect species sensitivity to climate and environmental change.
Previously, Sasha worked as a Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Konstanz. While in Konstanz, she worked on several projects:
1) Investigating on “Climate change and climate velocity impacts on IUCN Red List plant species across Germany”.
2) Investigating on “Landscape Change in the Lower Engadine and Implications for Cultural Ecosystem Services”.
3) Looking at "Cultural ecosystem services and human well-being in Madagascar under climate change".
Her recent focus is on climate change impacts on ecosystem services (ES) and Nature contributions to people (NCP), and in particular, she is interested in how these changes impact vulnerable communities (e.g. disabled, indigenous populations, children and elderly). She also works on understanding the relationships between multiple inequalities in order to incorporate this into policies and achieve Agenda 2030.
Sasha is also very passionate about inclusive education and promoting better inclusion of disabled students and researchers into STEM fields. Only such inclusion can erase current misconceptions and change demographics in Academia.
Languages
Slovenian
Croatian
Degrees
2015, University of Exeter, United Kingdom, PhD, Geography
2007, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, MSc, Physical Geography
1999, University of Zagreb, Croatia, BSc, Geography
Academic appointments
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Biology, University of Konstanz, 2016 - 2020
Highlighted publications
Petzold J, Kosanic A, Rakoto Joseph F, Rajaonarivelo Andrianina P, Ranaivosoa-Toandro SM, Andriamihaja OR, Voahanginirina LM, Thien L, Razanajatovo M. 2024. Nature's contributions to human well-being under climate change: Evidence from Central and Eastern Madagascar People and Nature, 6 :749-761 DOI Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Petzold J, Martín-López B. 2023. Pathways towards sustainable and just futures with and for disabled populations: a leverage points perspective Ecosystems and People, 19 DOI Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Petzold J. 2020. A systematic review of cultural ecosystem services and human wellbeing Ecosystem Services, 45 DOI Author Url Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Petzold J, Dunham A, Razanajatovo M. 2019. Climate concerns and the disabled community Science, 366 :698-699 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Kosanic A, Kavcic I, van Kleunen M, Harrison S. 2019. Climate change and climate change velocity analysis across Germany Scientific Reports, 9 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Kosanic A, Anderson K, Harrison S, Turkington T, Bennie J. 2018. Changes in the geographical distribution of plant species and climatic variables on the West Cornwall peninsula (South West UK) PLoS One, 13 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Journal article
Petzold J, Kosanic A, Rakoto Joseph F, Rajaonarivelo Andrianina P, Ranaivosoa-Toandro SM, Andriamihaja OR, Voahanginirina LM, Thien L, Razanajatovo M. 2024. Nature's contributions to human well-being under climate change: Evidence from Central and Eastern Madagascar People and Nature, 6 :749-761 DOI Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Lambers K, Galata S, Kothieringer K, Abderhalden A. 2023. Importance of Cultural Ecosystem Services for Cultural Identity and Wellbeing in the Lower Engadine, Switzerland Land, 12 DOI Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Petzold J, Martín-López B. 2023. Pathways towards sustainable and just futures with and for disabled populations: a leverage points perspective Ecosystems and People, 19 DOI Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Petzold J, Martín-López B, Razanajatovo M. 2022. An inclusive future: Disabled populations in the context of climate and environmental change Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 55 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Staffa RK, Riechers M, Martín-López B, Kosanic A. 2021. A feminist ethos for caring knowledge production in transdisciplinary sustainability science Sustainability Science, 17 :45-63 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Kosanic A, Petzold J. 2020. A systematic review of cultural ecosystem services and human wellbeing Ecosystem Services, 45 DOI Author Url Publisher Url
Kosanic A. 2020. Trust your support network Science Magazine, DOI Publisher Url
Tuosto K, Johnston JT, Connolly C, Lo C, Sanganyado E, Winter KA, Roembke T, Richter WE, Isaacson KJ, Raitor M, Kosanic A, Bessone L, Heim AB, Srivastava P, Hughes PW, Aamodt CM. 2020. Making science accessible Science, 367 :34-35 DOI Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Petzold J, Dunham A, Razanajatovo M. 2019. Climate concerns and the disabled community Science, 366 :698-699 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Brown P, Ross K, RELISH Consortium , Zhou Y. 2019. Large expert-curated database for benchmarking document similarity detection in biomedical literature search Database: the journal of biological databases and curation, :1-66 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Kosanic A, Kavcic I, van Kleunen M, Harrison S. 2019. Climate change and climate change velocity analysis across Germany Scientific Reports, 9 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Kosanic A, Hansen N, Zimmermann-Janschitz S, Chouinard V. 2018. Researchers with disabilities in the academic system American Association of Geographers Newsletter, DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Kosanic A, Anderson K, Harrison S, Turkington T, Bennie J. 2018. Changes in the geographical distribution of plant species and climatic variables on the West Cornwall peninsula (South West UK) PLoS One, 13 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Kosanic A, Anderson K, Frere HC, Harrison S. 2015. Regional vegetation change and implications for local conservation: An example from West Cornwall (United Kingdom) Global Ecology and Conservation, DOI Publisher Url
Kosanic A, Harrison S, Anderson K, Kavcic I. Present and historical climate variability in South West England Climatic Change: an interdisciplinary, international journal devoted to the description, causes and implications of climatic change, DOI Publisher Url
Report
Kosanic A, Tidball M, Mallick K, Beresford P, Bell S, Abdullahi J, Hatton J, Inckle K, Wilcox P. 2022. Up to the Challenge: Does the National Disability Strategy do enough to address the twin crises of Climate Change and life post-COVID-19 pandemic? Up to the Challenge: Does the National Disability Strategy do enough to address the twin crises of Climate Change and life post-COVID-19 pandemic? :1-60
Chapters
Larrington-Spencer H, Fenney D, Middlemiss L, Kosanic A. 2021. Disabled environmentalisms Karen B. Diversity and Inclusion in Environmentalism Routledge 9781000390353 DOI Publisher Url
Highlighted activities
Media Coverage:
How climate change disproportionately impacts those with disabilities 2020. 2020
Climate change is a disability rights issue 2019. 2019
Professional activities
Research Grants Awarded:
The Environment and Sustainability Research Grants, Availability of nature’s contributions to people for disabled populations in biosphere reserves, Grant value (£): 15 000, Duration of research project: 2years. 2022
Zukunftskolleg - Institute for Advanced Study, Cultural ecosystem services and human wellbeing in Madagascar under climate change, Dr Mialy Razanajatovo (University of Konstanz and Dr Jan Petzold (University of Hamburg), Grant value (£): € 8000, Duration of research project: On going. 2019
Zukunftskolleg - Institute for Advanced Study, Landscape Change in the Lower Engadine and Implications for Cultural Ecosystem Services, Dr Karsten Lambers (University of Leiden), Grant value (£): € 10 000, Duration of research project: 2 years. 2016
Media Coverage:
Government’s disability strategy ‘fails on climate change and Covid’ 2022
How climate change disproportionately impacts those with disabilities 2020
Climate change is a disability rights issue 2019
Pay More Attention to Climate Perils People with Disabilities Face, Experts Warn 2019
Public engagement:
Demonstration, Scientists, Panelist, Stanford University Mass Spectrometry Laboratory - FeMS panel, Building Inclusive Communities. 2021
Award:
Grant to promote inclusion in Academia (amount of award: € 3000), Equal Opportunity Office, University of Konstanz. 2020
Travel Grant awarded to attend World Biodiversity Forum-Davos (amount of award: € 1500), Zukunftskolleg, University of Konstanz. 2020
Young Scholar Travel Grant to attend “Embedding Diversity & Fostering Inclusion in the School of GeoSciences”, 2019, University of Edinburgh, (amount of award: € 1000), Young Scholar Fund (YSF). 2019
Mentorship Grant awarded to work with Dr Jen Dyer – an expert in Participatory methods and Mixed Ability Model (University of Leeds), (amount of award: € 4500), Zukunftskolleg, University of Konstanz. 2019
Grant awarded for a research visit of Professor Vicky Temperton (Leuphana University), (amount of award: € 1000), Zukunftskolleg, University of Konstanz. 2017
Lord Snowdon Award for physically disabled students in their education (amount of award: £2 000), Snowdon Trust, https://www.snowdontrust.org/. 2011
Other invited event:
Researchers with Disabilities, and the Obstacles They Face in Academia, AAG - New Orleans, United States, Invited Panel Session Organiser - American Association of Geographers. 2018
Fellowships:
Fellowship awarded by Zukunftskolleg and Equality and Diversity Office, University of Konstanz, Germany. 2016